


i want you so much (but i hate your guts)

by Szaszszlik



Category: Da Vinci's Demons
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Background Canon Characters - Freeform, How Do I Tag, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Living Together, M/M, Sexual Tension, Zo Curses, some violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-21
Updated: 2016-02-21
Packaged: 2018-05-22 10:24:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6075735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Szaszszlik/pseuds/Szaszszlik
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>He is staring at him. Girolamo fucking Riario is checking him out. His eyes flicker down and then stop at Zo’s chest.</i><br/><i>“Like what you see?” Zo smirks, pushing the panic back.</i><br/><i>He expects Girolamo to be angry. Taken aback. Maybe embarrassed.</i><br/><i>But Riario only smiles. “Perhaps.”</i><br/><i>And he just walks out.</i><br/> </p><p>Or the modern AU where Zo is <i>not</i> attracted to his worst enemy who happens to be his best friend’s boyfriend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	i want you so much (but i hate your guts)

**Author's Note:**

> An AU where Leo and Zo share a flat. I have no idea how should I rate it, I would appreciate some help xD The title is from Landfill by Daughter.

_day 0_  
At first he doesn’t suspect anything.  
“I have a new boyfriend,” says Leo, leaning on the doors.  
Zo doesn’t look up from his book. “Cool.”  
“He will be living with us for some time.”  
That catches Zo attention. Leo doesn’t just invite his every boyfriend and girlfriend to live with him - he has had too much of them - the last person who was granted with this honour was Lucrezia (and she was big. She lived with them for six months. Two years passed and Leo still has her ring - under a pillow, hoping Zo wouldn’t notice).  
Whoever this new guy is, he must be rather special. Zo tries to ignore the painful flip of his stomach.  
“When will he be there?” he asks, feigning disinterest.  
“Tomorrow.”  
“Tomorrow?!” Zo wouldn’t care if not for the fact he has things to hide. “That damn fast?”  
“He needs a place to stay in,” Leo shrugs. “He has some… Family problems.”  
“Well. I guess it’s okay,” Zo puts the book away. “Will he care about my activities? The not exactly legal ones?”  
Leo seems nervous for the first time. Zo squints his eyes. Leo sighs, “He might. He is a lawyer.”  
…  
“I fucking hate lawyers, Leo.”  
“I know. But with this one, I’m sure you’ll get along.” 

_day 1_  
Zo buys beer to make this lawyer feel welcome. He asks Leo if the guy even likes it but Leo avoids the questions about his boyfriend like a plague. It’s suspicious but Zo doesn’t give up hope.  
It won’t be that bad. It can’t be that bad. Zo can do it.  
Afternoon comes and the doorbell rings - and what the hell, the guy is exactly on time, not a minute later, not a minute earlier - Leo runs to the door with a big smile and opens them and…  
It’s worse than bad.  
Zo’s worst nightmare walks in in that damn black suit.  
“You,” he says, getting up on his feet. “You!”  
“Zoroaster,” Girolamo Riario says and crosses his arms.  
“You know each other?” asks Leo.  
Zo glares at Riario, clenching his fists. “Don’t play innocent, Leo. Is this some kind of a fucking joke? Because it’s not funny.”  
Riario lets out an irritated sigh and puts his bag on the floor. Leo pats his shoulder and whispers something to him. They look at each other, Leo smiling slightly, and Zo feels sick.  
“Come on,” Leo literally drags Zo to the kitchen. “What’s the matter?”  
“What the hell, Leo? Girolamo fucking Riario is your boyfriend now? And you haven’t thought you should, I don’t know, tell me in advance?”  
“I know you hate him-”  
“That’s a nice way to put it,” Zo mumbles.  
“But he really needs a place to crash in,” Leo licks his lips, probably knowing what effect it has on Zo.  
“He earns more than us two combined, stop trying to tell me he can’t afford a place.”  
Leo looks towards the doors and lowers his voice. “Look, he is… Troubled. He shouldn’t be alone in this state.”  
“I had spent a year in prison because of him,” Zo hisses.  
“Give him a chance?” and before Zo can look away Leo is staring at him with those puppy eyes that Zo can never resist. The innocent is an act; Zo knows it very well.  
It doesn’t make it easier.  
“Alright. But if I - or you, for that matter - end up in a prison, I will kill him.”  
“It won’t happen.”  
Zo doesn’t believe him.  
~  
Zo tries to act civilised. He offers Riario a beer but the man declines. Silence is so unbearable that Zo wants to get up and run out, but it’s exactly what Riario wants; to chase him away. Riario hasn’t done anything remotely hostile, not yet, but Zo refuses to let his guard down.  
“So, we’re taking the bed,” Leo says finally, leaning on Girolamo’s shoulder.  
“And I’m supposed to sleep on the couch. Great.”  
“Where have you slept before?” Riario asks and it almost sounds polite. Almost.  
“In the bed.”  
Riario looks at Leo. “And you?”  
“With me,” says Zo. Girolamo furrows his eyebrows and Zo smirks. “It has been very comfortable.”  
1:0 for him.  
“Well, now you will have to get used to a sore neck,” Riario shrugs. “A shame, really.”  
… Or maybe not. 

_day 2_  
Zo hates waking up to the alarm clock.  
Waking up to someone moaning is even worse.  
He puts his head under a pillow but it doesn’t tone out the sounds. Damn Leo, he could at least have enough decency not to fuck Riario on the first night but - well - no such luck. Wall in their flat aren’t exactly thin and Zo can hear everything. It’s six o’clock!  
He gets up, dresses and brushes his hair - trying to ignore what’s going on in the next room but, holy shit, he can’t. He takes his bag and hurries outside, slamming the front doors as loud as he can. They probably don’t even hear it but it makes him feel better.  
No. It doesn’t.  
He can’t get it out of his head. He can’t get out Riario’s voice out of his head and that’s the most fucked up thing ever.  
It’s cold outside but it doesn’t cool him down.

~

He spends the whole day out. After work he just wanders around the town without a purpose, almost wishing he could go back to the garage. But he is too tired and he doesn’t want a night shift; he wants to sleep.  
His mobile chirps when it’s already dark. Zo checks the phone and almost drops it. It’s Leo! Hell, has he noticed his absence? Is he worried? He might be. Zo opens the text. 

_10:46 pm  
Leo  
Buy some coffee on your way back. _

Zo doesn’t buy shit. He slips in the flat well past midnight and drops onto the couch, without them noticing. 

_day 3_  
Zo goes out of the bathroom and almost bumps into Riario.  
It’s early; even earlier than yesterday. And yet the man is properly dressed and buttoned up. Not like Zo minds. He really wouldn’t want to see him without clothes.  
“Good morning,” says Girolamo, tense. “Are you going out again?”  
Ha. Like it’s his business.  
“Are you going to fuck so loud again?” he crosses his arms.  
To Riario’s credit, he looks almost apologetic. “No. I am going to work today.”  
“Have fun putting innocent people in prison,” Zo mutters and walks away. Or at least tries to; Girolamo’s hand lands on his shoulder. Zo doesn’t struggle - mostly because he knows he wouldn’t be able to get out and he would only embarrassed himself. But he stares at Riario with all the fury he can muster.  
Which is a lot.  
“We both know you were nowhere near innocent,” Riario says, lowly, and it almost seems like an explanation.  
“I didn’t commit the crime you put me in jail for,” Zo wants to scream, to spit in his face. But the house is quiet and Leo is probably sleeping so he keeps his voice down. “And you knew it.”  
“You committed other offences.”  
“Fuck you,” he snorts. “Like you’re any better.”  
Riario removes his hand. “Whatever.”  
“Wait,” Zo says and Girolamo’s hand stops at the knob. “I just want you to know. You hurt Leo and I will fucking end you.”  
He doesn’t say things like that, not often. It’s not a nice thing to say. It’s not funny or protective. It’s just damn rude - but Zo wants to be rude. He wants to hurt Riario’s feelings.  
Of course Riario doesn’t care. He just smiles or rather half-smiles in an unsettling way. “I’d love to see you try.”

~

As it turns out, Leo isn’t in the house anyway. He must have left when Zo was sleeping.  
Zo don’t have much to do. It is Sunday, for fuck sake, and he is sitting on his couch, trying to ignore the pain in his neck. He tries to call Nico but he doesn’t answer.  
He watches Netflix but he can’t focus on it.  
“Fuck it,” he mumbles to himself. 

_day 7_  
Riario works regularly and long. It’s not that hard to avoid him, especially during work days. Zo falls in a rhythm of some sort. He sleeps (sometimes pretends to) or goes out when Riario’s in. He comes back when Riario’s out. It’s nice. It works for him. It works for Girolamo.  
“Zo!”  
Apparently, it doesn’t work for Leo.  
Zo tries to run to the front doors but Leo is already there, smiling. Zo admits his defeat with a smile of his own. “Good morning.”  
Leo actually looks better than he has in a while. His hair still is a mess but the bags under his eyes are almost gone. “It will be even better if you make breakfast.”  
“Leo…”  
“I want pancakes,” Leo doesn’t ask, he demands. To someone else, Zo would say no - putting it in less polite way - but he finds himself laughing. Leo drags him to the kitchen and- “I’ve found him!”  
-the good mood is gone.  
Riario is already sitting at the table, clothes dark as always. He offers Leo a smile smile but his gaze hardens when he meets Zo’s eyes. “Congratulations, artista.”  
“I’m not your personal cook, Leo,” Zo says.  
“It is quite alright. I can make us breakfast,” Riario stands up and holy crap, no way.  
“I didn’t say I’m not going to make it!”  
“Maybe you should just work together,” Leo laughs, already sitting at the table. Zo sends him a quick glare.  
“He will just slow me down,” Girolamo takes out a pan. “I do not want his help.”  
“Hey!”  
“Alright, alright. You can get the plates out,” Riario says, going for a bowl. Zo is stunned for a few seconds.  
“Or maybe you will get the plates?”  
It doesn’t matter. It really doesn’t. It shouldn’t.  
Riario sends him a glare that sends a shiver down Zo’s spine. It’s both unpleasant and pleasant at the same time. Fuck.  
Zo gets the plates. Getting murdered over a breakfast would be a stupid way to die.  
1:1. 

_day 19_  
He puts the Queen down.  
“Check mat.”  
2:1  
Riario is silent for a while, staring at the board like he can’t believe his eyes. Zo smiles - this time there’s nothing Riario could do. His King is cornered and it took Zo less than twenty minutes.  
Riario looks up. “You are correct. I have not expected that.”  
“What can I say?” Zo shrugs. “I am awesome at chess.”  
There something in Girolamo’s eyes that hasn’t been there before. Zo doesn’t know what it is. What he does know is that Riario’s face lack the hostility that should be there.  
“I do admit you are good at it,” Riario nods, once. “We have to play go sometime. I am curious how would you do.”  
“I’m afraid he would beat your ass,” Leo walks into a room, kisses Riario on the cheek (Zo looks away quickly) and then sits on the table. He picks up the Queen and looks at it. “Our Zo here loves strategy games. Probably cheats at them.”  
“You can’t cheat at strategy games,” Zo rolls his eyes but smiles anyway. He always does when he is looking at Leo. “Admit it, you just can’t get over the fact that I’ve beaten even your great mind.”  
“You have?” Riario’s face is unreadable again but he still watches Zo. Like he is calculating or something.  
“Few times, yes,” Leo mumbles.  
“Half of the time!”  
“Only one third!”  
“But I have beaten the Prince of Darkness!” Zo smirks despite the memory not being the happiest one. “And you haven’t managed that.”  
“That was… Okay, you are right,” Leo swings his legs. “Hell, that guy was a creep.”  
“And who are you talking about?” Riario says, somehow curious.  
“Oh, you would love him!” Zo says, collecting the chess pieces. He wouldn’t want to loose any of them. They’re almost like a treasure for him. “He claimed he sold his soul for Lucifer in exchange for immortality. Your stuff, isn’t it? Biblical shit?”  
And there is it again - the glare. The hate. Oh, Zo has missed. Or maybe not exactly miss it but it makes it easier. Riario furrows his eyebrows. “It would be wise of you not to insult other people’s religion.”  
Zo shrugs. “I don’t see why not.”  
“You may anger wrong people,” Riario gets up. “Come on, Leonardo, we have business to attend to.”  
Zo doesn’t even know where they’re going.  
It’s ridiculous that part of him wants to join them. 

_day 22_  
Getting up the stair when his leg hurts so much is a nightmare. He leans on the wall and still - every step burns. When he reaches his floor he is panting and hissing curses under his breath. He really should have been more careful.  
It doesn’t matter now. He picks the keys out of the pocket, drops them, picks them up again and finally manages to open to doors. He stumbles over and falls down on his face. Well, that’s pathetic. At least at this hour nobody is home.  
“Zoroaster?”  
… Of course.  
“Why the fuck aren’t you at work?” he groans and picks himself up. His head spins and so does the word - before he knows it, he is already falling back again. But this time Riario catches him. Zo tries to push him away but the grip is too strong. Riario half leads, half drags him towards the living room and sits him on the couch surprisingly gently.  
It hurts like hell anyway.  
“I have a day off. What happened to you?”  
Zo convinces himself that Riario looks annoyed (because he seems worried and Zo doesn’t want to think about that). He touches his split lip and curses again. There is blood. “Is Leo in?”  
“No. Have you gotten into a fight?”  
He considers standing up and walking to the bathroom but he would probably fall down in the middle of this short distance and embarrass himself fully. He can’t afford that, not in front of him.  
“Can you stop asking stupid questions and just get me the first aid kit? It’s in the-”  
“I know where it is.”  
When Riario returns, Zo fully expect a cold remark about his stupidness. What he doesn’t expect at all is Riario pressing a piece of wet cloth to his head like it’s the most normal thing ever.  
“I can do it alone.”  
“Be quiet,” and all of the sudden Riario is crouching in front of him, taking his shoe off. He wants to look at the ankle, of course - Zo hasn’t been able to hide his limp - but still, hell. Zo holds his breath when he feels Riario’s fingers on his leg. It’s weird. Riario taking care of his wound is surreal enough. Zo’s own reaction to it - he has goosebumps, goddamit! - is not.  
That stupid brute has hit him in the head harder than he thought and he has a concussion. That is the only reasonable explanation.  
“It’s not sprained,” Riario stands up. “But you should still rest it. Take your shirt off.”  
It sends a shiver down his spine that he doesn’t like. Not in the slightest.  
“What the fuck?”  
“I can see blood on it,” Riario explains, this time clearly irritated. “Please, tell me weapons have not been involved.”  
Zo shrugs which is a painful mistake. “I think one of them had a knife. But they didn’t use it. Why do you care?”  
“Because you are too stupid to go to hospital. Just take it off already, you are being more stubborn than Leonardo-”  
Zo’s arm hurts when he pulls it off but he just clenches his teeth - accepting help with this would be too much. “They kicked me few times but nothing’s broken.”  
“Turn around.”  
Zo almost faints when he feels cold fingers on his back. They almost pleasant. The wet cloth pressed to the small cut just below his shoulder blade is even better. “Why are you helping me?”  
Riario is silent for a while. “Tell me what happened and I will return the favour.”  
“I’ve gotten into a fight. Simple as that. Five against one is never a good idea but I thought… They insulted Leo.”  
“So you know who they are,” Girolamo’s fingers stop moving but he doesn’t remove his hand.  
“Well, yes. Fuck. We’re buddies.”  
“I find it hard to believe. You should go to the police.”  
Zo turns around - too fast and rapidly but he stops the hiss - and raises his eyebrows. He wants to say something about how he doesn’t like police or that he had started it or that he kind of deserved it - but his words die out on tongue.  
He is staring at him. Girolamo fucking Riario is checking him out. His eyes flicker down and then stop at Zo’s chest.  
“Like what you see?” Zo smirks, pushing the panic back. He doesn’t even hide if from Riario, he hides it from himself.  
He expects Girolamo to be angry. Taken aback. Maybe embarrassed.  
But Riario only smiles. “Perhaps.”  
And he just walks out.  
Well.  
2:2. 

(It’s late in the night that Zo realises;  
when asked  
Riario hasn’t denied he cares.)

 _day 24_  
“You shouldn’t be smoking things like that.”  
Zo winces and looks to the left. Riario has appeared out of nowhere, like a goddamn ninja - Zo hasn’t heard him approach. And now he is standing just few steps in front of him, his gaze colder than the wall Zo is leaning on.  
“Piss off. I’m outside.”  
“That is the problem. I do not wish to know what it is but I am sure it is illegal. Do you really want someone to see?”  
“Are you ever satisfied? You hate it when I do it inside.”  
“I hate when one of you smoke. No matter where. So stop.”  
Zo thinks he should get angry. But he doesn’t.  
“Make me,” he decides to go for a laugh. He inhales deeply. The smoke doesn’t burn, not anymore. It just makes him warmer. Makes him less afraid and more prone to bulshit (and there’s less pain.) He blows the smoke in Riario’s stupid face, hoping he would choke.  
Riario furrows his eyebrows and snatches the cigarette out of his hands. Fast. Before Zo can react, his precious possession is already on the ground, being stepped on.  
“Fuck you, are you out of your mind?! The shit’s expensive! You’re paying me back!”  
Riario moves forward, towards him. Zo takes a small step back - he can only afford that because there’s a wall behind him. Also, his leg still hurt and he can’t run away. Riario is close, too close. He feels his breath on his face. Well, shit.  
Girolamo smiles. “Make me.”  
He turns around and walks away (again).  
3:2 for Riario. 

_day 29_  
They asks him to join them.  
In bed.  
They are mad. 

4:2 for Riario. 

_day 30_  
Leo wants to celebrate the first month of their life together. And what Leo wants, he gets.  
They end up sitting on the couch, Leo in the middle, a beer for everyone of them. They watch a movie - it’s damn stupid and nobody actually pays attention. Leo is too busy whispering something to Riario, leaning on his shoulder, playing with his hair. Sometimes, when a character on screen does something too stupid, he shouts at the tv. At first Riario looks uncomfortable and tenses every time Leo touches him but he quickly calms down. He even starts to rub Leo’s shoulder.  
It’s not that Zo watches them!  
Alright, he does.  
But he is not jealous.  
No, seriously, the tightness in his chest is far more jealously. It’s more like a longing or loneliness or some other crap Zo has no intent to deal with.  
Suddenly Riario raises his head and their eyes meet. Zo would look away but then it would look like he is embarrassed - which he is - but he doesn’t want him to know. Riario whispers something to Leo’s ear, not looking away from Zo.  
Whatever he says, it’s bad news. Zo puts his beer away but before he can stand up, there’s an arm around his shoulder and Leo pulls him closer. Zo’s head lands on Leo’s shoulder and - well - he is even closer to Riario than before. And to Leo. And he feels warm in the stomach but he is also confused.  
“What the fuck are you doing?” he asks, trying to pull back.  
Leo doesn’t let him. “Group hugs are the best hugs. Especially since I will have to go back to work in less than five minutes. Come on, boys.”  
He pats his head, hands slipping in the hair. It’s really pleasant - pleasant enough that Zo closes his eyes, relaxing. It feels good.  
Wait.  
Leo has one hand around Zo’s waist and the other one at Riario’s lap.  
The fingers stroking his hair are Riario’s.  
The realisation terrifies him. He pulls back, this time with enough force to actually get away, and stands up, eyes wide.  
Leo frowns. “What’s wrong?”  
“I just- I don’t-” Zo looks at Riario who is watching him with a half-smile. “I need to go.”  
He leaves the room but not fast enough not to hear Leo’s remark-  
“Next time, we’re putting him in the middle.”  
-and Riario’s snort.  
5:2. It’s getting out of hand. 

_day 31_  
“But he is treating you with respect?” Zo furrows his eyebrows, balancing the laptop on his legs. “Because if he isn’t, I will come there and fuck him up.”  
There is no way Zo could ever beat Lorenzo in a fight - but he would challenge him anyway. It’s the right thing to do. The only thing. It’s the matter of his friend getting hurt after all.  
But Vanessa laughs and shakes her head. She looks happy now. “He is, don’t worry. He hasn’t tried anything funny for a while now. But you could, you know, come anyway. Visit.”  
“I will. During summer, remember?”  
“Of course!” she falls silent for a second, a small smile on her lips. “Giulio misses you.”  
“I would hope so. I’m his favourite uncle after all,” he smirks. “I miss you too, like hell.”  
The invention of video chats is a true act of genius but it’s not enough. He hopes he could reach to her, hug her. See her two years old son in real, not only in photos. Kids grow up so fast - especially those without fathers - and Zo knows he misses parts of Giulio’s childhood. (He was in a prison when he was born, for a start).  
At least they both have Nico.  
“It’s getting way too dramatic, Zo,” Vanessa laughs again. “Tell me, how’s Leo? He hasn’t called in ages.”  
“Oh, you know how Leo is,” Zo rolls his eyes. “He is happy, because of Riario. Which is good, of course, it’s nice to see him out of a sour mood. But living with them… They both have been acting so strange lately.”  
Vanessa tries to hide her smile. “Strange like usual or-?”  
“Strange like they asked me to join them in bed,” Zo blurts out.  
He still remembers it too well. They has been baking cookies together and then Leo just- suddenly - and Riario didn’t even seem very against this idea. It’s distracting and unsettling. And appealing in the strange way that makes him want to run away as far as he can.  
Vanessa snorts. “What did you say?”  
“I told them to fuck themselves, of course.”  
“And…?”  
“They did.”  
Making it impossible to sleep, of course. He could hear everything, every laugh and moan. They were even louder than usual, like they were trying to make him regret his decision.  
(and part of him did.)  
“Ooh,” Vanessa bits her lip. “It’s not like you to refuse a proposition like that.”  
“Are you serious?” he groans, ruffling his hair, his face suspiciously warm.  
“You like threesomes.”  
“Not with Riario! He wasn’t even genuine, I’m sure of it. He’s playing some sort of a sick game, making me uncomfortable. Make he wants to chase me away? He’s winning and I don’t even know the rules.”  
“Maybe you should just talk to him?” she asks, this time gently.  
The idea is… Good, actually. Anything else would just make the matter worse. “You’re right. I will drag him to a place where he feels uneasy and interrogate him there. Thanks.”  
“Zo! Come on!”  
“Don’t worry, I have it under control.” 

_day 40_  
It takes him more courage - and time - than Zo thought it would. He is sweating, breathing nervously, behaving like a teenager before his first day. Expect it is not his first one. And it’s not a date. Still, he puts on his best jeans, buttons down his shirt and ruffles his hair until it is a very deliberate mess. He looks good. He doesn’t feel that way.  
He goes into the living room and hesitates. Riario is sitting on the couch (Zo’s couch, of course!) with Leo’s legs on his lap, reading some boring book. Leo is on his back, doing something on a phone.  
“I’m going out for a drink,” Zo says, leaning on the doorstep. “Are you coming with me?”  
“Can’t. Busy,” Leo - as predicted - doesn’t even look at him.  
Zo catches Riario’s gaze and holds it for a while. “Riario?”  
Leo’s head goes up. Girolamo actually looks shocked. Zo licks his lips.  
“If you require someone to hold your hand then… Why not,” says Riario, being his calm self again.  
3:5, bitch. Zo holds back his grin of excitement - he isn’t happy he is spending more time with Riario. It’s just the fact that his plan worked. Yes. Definitely.  
“Then come on. We don’t have the whole night.”

~

“You said you were going for a drink.”  
“I am.”  
“So why are we here?”  
Zo smirks. They haven’t even entered yet and Riario already looks uncomfortable. And sort of out of place. No wonder why; he is dressed up in a place people usually dress down. The green neon sign - Basilisk - shimmers above the door.  
“It’s a club. You can drink in a club.”  
Riario frowns. “I have no intention in waiting in that queue.”  
Zo looks at the line of people that reaches the other side of the street and chuckles. “Me neither.”  
He pushes his way forward like he belongs - mostly because he does. The bodyguard nods his head and just lets them in. The music is so loud that Zo don’t only hear it; he feels it with his whole body. Maybe it hasn’t been such a good idea - it will be hard to talk. But he couldn’t care less. The dancing people, the noise, the flashing lights; he already is part of it. The thrill is there.  
Riario doesn’t feel it yet judging by his face. Zo grabs his wrist - it’s a risk, it can backfire at him, Riario can punch him or something; but Riario doesn’t even try to pull away - and drags him towards the bar at the other side of the club, pushing his way through the mass. He pats a familiar face in the shoulder.  
“I would have the usual,” he says - or yells, it’s the only way to be heard.  
“You have to be fucking kidding me! Zoroaster!” the man turns around, a smile already on his face. “I thought you died in some hole!”  
“Holes can be used in far more pleasant way than dying,” Zo’s grins and hugs him above the bar. “Amerigo, I’d like you to meet my… Uhm… Who the hell is he? Just meet him. His name is Girolamo Riario. Riario, this is Amerigo Vespucci, a friend of mine.”  
Vespucci looks at Girolamo with interest. “Zo, you bastard! Picking up the best fishes in the sea, huh?”  
Zo coughes. “He isn’t… You know what, just give us the drinks.”  
Riario is glaring at Vespucci like he wants to stab him with a straw. Zo grabs the drinks they are offered and quickly goes away, trying to find a more private corner. And promising himself he won’t go anywhere near Vespucci in the nearest time. “Sorry about him. He can be… Well.”  
“You two are rather similar,” Riario says dryly. Great, now he is glaring at Zo. It’s not exactly going according to plan. “A good friend of yours?”  
The way he says friend… Is he suggesting something? That Amerigo is more than a friend? No, for sure not. He wouldn’t care. “He sells me drugs. The best ones in city.”  
“What?” Riario’s eyes darkens even more.  
“I’m kidding! Kidding! Not anymore!” Zo takes a quick sip, the alcohol clearing his head a little. “Not really. I don’t like him much but we grew up together.”  
“Brothers, then?”  
“We were in the same orphanage.”  
Riario is quiet for a while, playing with the straw from his drink. Then he sighs and looks at Zo - again, in a different way than usually.  
“Please, don’t tell me that you sorry,” Zo says quickly. “It’s a fucked up story, really, because. You know. My father is alive. So nothing to be sorry about. I have no idea what happened to my mother, where she is, is she still alive. But my father, I, I even know where he lives.”  
Zo doesn’t know why he’s saying him that but once he has opened his mouth, the word just didn’t stop. He hasn’t told Leo about it, worried that he would be worried. But Riario, he is a different matter. He won’t worry. (And even if he will, Zo won’t care about him).  
“Have you spoken to him?” Riario asks.  
“Yes, once,” Zo’s fingers tightens around the glass. “To put it shortly, he wasn’t thrilled to see me. I called him names. He said he… Well. Was happy that he gaved me up. And that I should get out of his house or he would call the police.”  
Riario’s hand is suddenly on his shoulder, a warm and - strangely reassuring - contact. Zo presses himself to this hand like he is drowning and this is his way out of the water. They stay still like that, silence, and Zo can barely breath.  
“I guess we all have wonderful fathers,” Girolamo says finally, pulling away.  
“I’ve heard yours is a dick,” Zo looks at him.  
“He disowned me because I did not want to break out with Leonardo.”  
“Oh shit. Oh shit, that’s…”  
“Don’t say you’re sorry,” Riario smiles but he looks sad.  
Zo doesn’t know what to say then. He doesn’t know what to do know. He hasn’t expected it to go into this strange direction. He doesn’t know what to do. “Come on. Let’s dance.”

~  
“Tell me one thing!” Zo yells, stopping for a moment. “Why the fuck haven’t you participate in you-can-dance type of programme?”  
Because he can. He can dance and that probably shouldn’t shock Zo that much - he slowly begin to realise he doesn’t know him at all - but it does.  
“Are you complimenting my dancing skills? Because there are nicer ways to do that.”  
“Am not! It’s just,” Zo hesitates for a while, thinking about an excuse why he has said that, “you’re so good looking people would surely vote for you.”  
Riario raises his eyebrows and Zo knows he fucked up.  
What the hell. Has he really said that? That’s what it is supposed to be about - to make Riario as uncomfortable as Riario makes him - but it is quickly slipping out of control. Especially since Riario doesn’t seem very moved by it. Only amused. Or bemused. Zo can’t tell it apart anymore.  
“And now you are flirting with me. Who would guess.”  
“I am not-”  
But before he can finish his sentence, Riario grabs his wrists and spins around. Zo finds himself laughing, hysterically. Riario lets him go quickly but the music has already reclaimed them, making it impossible to stop dancing. So Zo doesn’t. He goes with the flow, bumping into strangers - and Riario too, few times, each making him laugh hysterically - and he feels lighthearted and lightheaded, smiling openly at Riario like he doesn’t hate him (and perhaps it’s real; perhaps he stopped hating him somewhere along the way).  
Riario doesn’t smile back but he does keep his eyes on Zo, mimicking his moves from time to time.  
Zo decides he must be more drunk than Zo himself. There’s no other way he would act like that. He laughs. He needs a drink. Like, now. He turns around-  
Someone punches him in the face.  
He takes a few uneasy steps back, his head spinning. He doesn’t recognise the stranger in front of him - but he is built like a bull. And must be pissed because he quickly grabs the front of Zo’s shirt. Zo founds it hard to breath - a little because the man adds a blow to his stomach but mostly because hell, the guy stinks!  
“The money,” the stranger hisses in his face. “Where is it?”  
Oh.  
It alway is about money. About the debts. Like there’s nothing more interesting in the world.  
“Who sent you?” Zo puts on one of his most charming smiles. “Because I’m not sure I know what you’re talking about.”  
The stranger tightens his grip on Zo’s shirt, “I will help you clear your memory, bitch-”  
He swings his free hand again and Zo prepares to dodge it - only he doesn’t have to. Because suddenly wild Riario appear - and he really has some ninja moves - and before Zo knows, the stranger is lying on the ground, shouting on the ground. Nobody pays much attention to him; not yet.  
Riario looks at him, frowning. “Are you okay?”  
“Sure. But we must get out of here, they never travel alone.”  
Riario rolls his eyes but leads the way. Zo follows.  
They are waiting for them near the entrance - five pissed off dudes with nothing better to do. It’s a lot like they dance - Riario sends two on the ground. Zo punches two. The last one he pushes towards Riario like they’re in some kind of movie. Riario sends him down too. And then they are running on the dark street, the air cold but not cold enough.  
They stop few street away. Zo leans on a wall, panting and laughing. Riario crosses his arms, watches him with unreadable expression. “Are you in trouble?”  
“Nah,” Zo fishes a cigarette out of his pocket and lights it up. “Nothing that I couldn’t handle, that’s it.”  
“I thought you were done with criminal activities.”  
“Having debts doesn’t make me a criminal!” he shakes his head. “Besides, people likes this bad thing. Bad boys. Bad girls. It’s funny, really.”  
Riario doesn’t answer, at least not at first. It’s so quiet that for a moment Zo can hear his own heart, beating way too rapidly. Then Riario leans in, takes the cigarette and inhales, closing his eyes for a moment. He blows the smoke in the air and gives it back. “Do you?”  
And he smile and turns around and Zo knows he will just go away now.  
Just like that.  
He will leave, like he has few times already.  
Zo throws the cigarette away, not bothering to stomp on it, and runs after Riario. It doesn’t take him more than few longs leaps and he grabs Riario’s shoulder, spins him around and - without hesitation (if he would hesitate for even a second, he wouldn’t do it) - he kisses him.  
Later, he will blame the adrenaline from the fight, the alcohol, the music, maybe even the pain. But now, his thoughts are too blurry. Now, he is honest. He wants it, he has wanted it for a while now. So bad he can’t even hold himself back; it’s wild and it’s rough, without a hint of gentleness. It’s easier that way.  
Riario’s fingers are in his hair, pulling him closer. They bump into each other, chest to chest, mouth to mouth, and Zo loves it. He pushes Riario towards the wall until he leans on it. Zo leans on him because his legs are shaking and he would fall any other way.  
They part their lips and Riario looks at him with something like amusement. Or maybe not. He’s not disgusted, that’s enough. “I guess it is a yes.”  
“I don’t like you,” Zo shakes his head. “But I don’t hate you, either.”  
“I can work with that,” Riario grabs him by his shoulders and turns them around, and suddenly it’s Zo who is pressed to the wall, trapped between it and his ex-worst-enemy. Riario kisses him again, this  
time a little more gently.  
That is until he bites Zo’s lower lip, hard. Zo moans. Holy shit. Riario chuckles darkly and increases the pressure. Zo can’t believe this.  
He is kissing Riario and it feels fantastic.  
Wait.  
What.  
What the fuck?  
“Stop,” Zo says, quickly, feeling the panic building in his chest.  
“Is something wrong?” Riario furrows his brows.  
“Let me go,” all Zo can force out is a quiet whisper but it’s enough. Riario steps back immediately and Zo pushes himself away from the wall, touching his lips. “Oh shit. Fuck.”  
“Zoroaster…?”  
“I shouldn’t have done it.”  
He turns and walks away.  
Hell, how will he even look in Leo’s eyes? How will he look in the mirror? Fuck, fuck, fuck  
He must leave. He must leave the house.


End file.
